Shopping With Teenagers

As children grow up and become more independent there is little need for them to go everywhere with their parents anymore. However many parents still want their teenage children present whilst on shopping trips if not for the purchasing of goods but simply just for the company and involvement in their teenagers life.

Shopping with your teenage children is a great opportunity to talk to them about aspects of their life and to generally keep up-to-date with what is going on in their life. By planning a shopping trip it is a great opportunity to spend time together and enjoy each others company.

When you do plan a shopping trip with your teenager it is important that you set boundaries spending wise. If you don’t have a large shopping budget then avoid ‘power shopping’ there is nothing worse than spending all day shopping only to come home empty handed. You should set a budget of the amount of money that you are intending on spending on certain items whilst shopping then if your teenager wants something that is out of your budget it will be up to them to pay the difference in order to get it.

Once your budget has been set and your teenage child knows what this budget is it is important that you don’t back down. It the item costs too much then stand your ground and refuse to pay the full amount. You are the one who is earning the money so it is you who will have the final say as to whether a purchase is carried out. This is not only good for your bank account; it is also good for your teenager as they will learn to appreciate the value of money and drive home the fact that in order to be able to afford luxuries that you need to earn your money. Although this may cause a few frowns at the time your teenager will be more grateful for the products that they do receive and will make them want to earn enough money to be able to afford such things. Your teenager will grow a respect for the fact that you work to earn the money that pays for their things and they will earn a respect for money so that their spending habits will be controlled.

If you are out shopping for most of the day it is a good idea to stop for some lunch, which will make you both feel refreshed and allow you more of a chance to talk about things and spend quality time together.

One thing that you don’t want to be present on your shopping trip is a bad mood. Teenagers are constantly going through various mood swings so avoiding experiencing one whilst out shopping is the best solution for everyone’s sake. In order to conquer these mood swings you should be willing to come to a compromise that leaves you sticking to your rules and budget but leaves your teenage child satisfied. You should also try and avoid border line purchases. Before you go ahead and make a purchase you should ensure that what you are buying is what your teenager actually wants as “I’ve changed my mind” on the drive home will not be pleasant for anyone.

Enjoy the time that you can with your children whilst they are teenagers, it will bring you closer together, making these years easier on everyone.

15 Comments

Why do we have a culture of disrespect and poor customer relations by teenagers?When shopping, a large number of teenager shop assistants seem to be cheeeky and disrespectful with a "Am I Bothered" attitude. Also in the street they they seem to walk straight towards people and disrespectfully make remarks if the elderly and others don’t give way to them.

Has anyone else been the subject of abuse verbal or otherwise by tennage shop assistants and (Saturday teenage assistants in shops). I would love to read your responses to this ever growing problem of disrespect.

it may be an attitude because most kids at that age dont really want to work in the first place and are either forced by parents or requirement for school work program credits. Therefore there is no real passion for what they are doing..to them its just to get a check!References : life

well im a teen (14)
and i get it from them ha!
but yea
1 time i was in a clotheing store
1st of they NEVER smile
i mean come on
i love smiling
anyways
so i asked her if they had a size small
and she said it in the rudest tone "no cant u see that we have in the rack is all we got"
and i was like ok…and just kept looking
then i asked her "is this shirt on sale" you know to make sure
and shes like "can’t you read the sign" so i just left…gosh teens these days…References : my mind XD

there are alot of really great teenagers out there so dont think its all,but the ones who arent are very disrespectful and have an attitude of thinking they deserve everything,they are angry and rude and have no fear,in todays world these kids have been left to grow up on their own as both parents workReferences :

Lol, i’m the exact person you’redescribing, except I have maners. I almost always smile (unless its a REALLY bad day for me) and say hello, and if I trip over someone I appologise even if its not my fault (some woman rammed her pushchair at me the other day and glared at me as if it was my fault!), I think about their questions, say hello to their children and (as our till area is rather compact) help people with wheelchairs and buggy’s etc to get through.

Its the customers that are bad as well though. You’d be amazed at what cashiers have to put upwith. People throw their shopping on the desk, get into your personal space, let their children climb on our displays [atm we have garden chairs by the till stacked quite high, and luggage nearby. A group of children the other day (with parents) got our luggare and clambered up onto the chairs! I had to get off the till (which was SOOOOO busy) and tell them all to get off!]

And the way we get ordered around sometimes! It doesnt take much to say please, or even ‘would you mind…’

and it seems women in their 20′s-30′s, and men over 50 are the worst for it. Teenagers are usually loud and obnoxious, but teenagers have been like that for centuriesReferences : Experience, too much of it!

Usually when a young person acts like that to me I assume they might have a lot of heartaches and turmoil in their lives so I always say something to snap them out of it and lighten the load. As for walking down the street, I pay no attention to them because I assume that thy want attention and I don’t give anyone attention that is bad. Sometimes I won’t move, just to make them mad at me so I can start a conversation with them.References :

The answer is simple, we are no longer allowed to effectly discipline our children at home, in public or in school; therefore, they have little or no respect for anyone or anything. This is a very general statement that does not apply to everyone or everything. I know that I would never even think to speak to my father the way I commonly hear children speak to their parents. This is not a indepth answer, but it is the root of the problem.References :

I think that it is not having parental guidance, I have noticed the same attitude that you are speaking of. Some have the attitude that we as a society owe them something for nothing.
It is totally a lack of respect for other people, I come into contact with teenagers that are taking out of the home and put into a Group home for extended periods of time because they have been involved with drugs or abused…..etc…and it is so odd that parents don’t take more interest in these children that they brought into this world. Its such a waste….I for one lost a child that I raised for 10 years after a car accident…and he came from an abusive home and still had respect that I instilled in him among other things. I see the mistakes that parents make and now I just shrug my shoulders because I feel for the children, they are the ones who are lost.

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